Just sat chillin’ in the lounge, listening to some Dave Brubeck vinyl
The AIWA stack is connected to the mains via a 4 way adapter which has four, two prong European inputs. The AIWA mains leads are USA to European two pin. Not ideal but for “originality” I left things as they were. Has anyone got any ideas regarding a better connection? I’ve already got the 3 pin UK adapters which the two pin Euro plugs fit into. None of these provide a decent connection if I’m being honest. I’ve seen a power conditioner type unit on Amazon which has 4 X EURO inputs and 6 X multi plug connections, digital display of consumption etc. I wonder if that would be the better solution? I could retain the OEM plugs AND use the conditioner for the other 3 pin stuff that I have (or could have) sat on the HIFI stand. Bear in mind I’m picking up the additional LEAK equipment shortly (amp/tuner/speakers) from a benefactor on here which could utilise the same power conditioner.
As a fellow hi-fi fan (mainly older Pioneer & Monitor Audio atm) and always looking for the best bang for buck…my experience of these things are that they’re usually snake oil. Not as bad as a certain well known purveyor of £500 fuses but even so.
My 4 way adapter thing, is (I think) more for the full, round type connector, rather than the just two pin flat affair. I guess, what I need is a firm connection as the current adapter allows the plugs to move and this causes interference when listening to music. A quick tap can restore the clean sound but can come back again. I could snip the wires and fit 3 pin plugs into the 6 way power strips I already have installed. The allure of the one I linked to was being able to retain the OEM plugs on the stack AND plug other stuff into the UK sockets on the nobsound unit as well. If it is snake oil, I might give it a miss. I have enough of that stuff already
Not a particularly great image but this was earlier.
I adjusted the tone arm height the other day (along with all the other adjustments that could be made) running nice and level/parall to the deck itself This pic was fuelled by Chardonnay! Well, a glass or two whilst listening to Simon & Garfunkel “The ultimate collection”
That looks great something that helped my Pioneer deck was memory foam taped inside the metal chassis to absorb vibrations. Not visible too which I like a lot.
That nobsound is available with other names on it at different inflated prices, but all from the same Chinese factory with the same cavalier disregard of EU AND UK safety standards. (shuttered sockets? lies on ratings? look at the nobsound sales page for a sea of examples of what NOT to buy.)
None of them actually give you a constant mains voltage despite claiming to “condition” it, but then your amp can cope with quite a wide range of mains voltage already by virtue of the power supply design so can ignore variations. Such conditioners do exist, but to carry 13A the step-up transformer and swinging choke regulator, OR AC-AC converter-switcher via a battery and transformer, would be much bigger than that little empty box and be very heavy, and a lot more expensive.
The nobsound filtering will be a couple of tiny chokes doubling up as fuses (if you’re lucky) and some capacitors. Beware of some of these if wired to USA standards, because they can trip your RCDs and turn off the house mains (depending on how your sparks has set up the rings etc).
The best filter systems use MOVs (Metal Oxide Varistors) which are almost zero impedance when passing correct current for the series elements and extremely high impedance on the shunt elements until the mains goes over-volts at which time they clamp it down and then the series ones act like fuses or in extreme case real fuses or breakers will trip to save your gear.
I’ve been using these Belkin extenders for years and still use one for my server because of the spark protection on the incoming phone line, but alas no longer available because they are too good. So now I buy these for general use eg the hifi, and these power savers with computers and TV to switch off peripherals.
Most domestic fires come from worn mains leads at the plugs! It is always worth checking them properly each year.
Be safe so you can relax and enjoy the hifi.
Did you know that you can synthesise true surround sound from the original Dave Brubeck Time Out LP?
I was doing that forty-odd years ago with four speakers and a couple of watty variable resistors from my stereo. Look up Hafler on the Wiki and elsewhere; the Wiki is slightly wrong but gives you the idea. I could walk around Paul Desmond emptying his sax. I forget the actual arrangement we had but the two main speakers were at the end of the room as normal, and then halfway back along the sides of the room were the other two wired with some of the -left on the right small speaker and some of the -right on the left small speaker. We experimented with permutations until there were complaints about all the wires getting in the way of the small children.
I tried it again with the CD about twenty years ago, and it was nowhere near as good, something was lost in the re-mastering. However, having recently digitised the LP and then playing that through the 5.1 system which does something like Hafler, the true surround is back, and still better than the CD.
I read somewhere that the sessions were recorded simply with well-placed crossed-pair microphones onto a twin track tape machine. That could be apocryphal so don’t take my word for it, but if true it does explain why the surround synthesis works so well.
Re 3 pin multi-socket conditioners I use Tacima 6 socket ones, and the units plugged in are fused so that no combination being used exceeds the 13amps. maximum.
A little update. A while ago, I posted that a member on here had offered me some LEAK audio, namely, a pair of LEAK 600 floor standing speakers and a LEAK DELTA 75 tuner amplifier, all owned from new! A fantastic opportunity for me and an amazing offer from the member. Turns out also, that a 1964 GRUNDIG TK30 reel to reel came with the other equipment, again owned from new, along with receipts, brochures, handbook etc.
Well, this weekend saw me and Mrs B making the journey south to meet up with our eldest son and girlfriend in St Albans, this was the right area of the country to collect the audio equipment.
Anyway, suffice to say, everything is back home now and awaiting trials and testing! What, for me at least, is almost as important as the equipment, is the fact that all the literature to accompany these items, came with them. I absolutely love this, as it’s almost as good as stepping back in time and buying it new, 40 years ago. Sales brochures, warranty cards, guarantees, manuals, price lists etc, it’s all there! I have this sort of thing for virtually all my retro equipment and I guess it’s the “completeness” of owning not only the equipment but also the paperwork to go with it. I reckon the warranty cards aren’t valid anymore though?
I cannot thank this member enough for affording me this opportunity to strengthen my collection of older hifi. Yes, it is only home equipment but LEAK is my surname too and the manufacturing premises for H J Leak, was less than 15minutes from my house too! Absolutely over the moon. Some tinkering is required for the amp but I’ll get on with that shortly, if it’s beyond me, I will get the folk that sorted my AIWA stacks out to take a look
Finally, I know the member involved wishes to remain anonymous which I respect, however, if he reads this post, which hopefully he will, then I want to put on record, regardless of the passing on of this equipment, that you could not wish to meet a nicer chap! A true gentleman indeed!
All that stuff looks fabulous Barrie. Looks like you’re going to have a great Christmas exploring your ‘new’ gear. Can’t wait to learn how it turns out, sound-wise.
Well I guess Christmas came early in my household!
Ive had a day of tinkering today but not been able to get the receiver working, I knew this when I picked it up. Looks like the two large output capacitors have swelled up a bit Anyway, that’s definitely not an issue, cosmetically, it’s in lovely condition I checked all the fuses and had a general poke around while I was in there but a bit too much for me to handle I think? Best bit, I’ve picked up a fully working example with poor cosmetics, case damage, some of knobs aren’t original, etc but otherwise good! And, it’s in Redbourn, 20 minutes from my sons in St Albans! He’s going to to pick it up for me and bring it up to West Yorkshire at Christmas. A bit of case and knob swapping and it’s all systems go!
Now I have effectively, 2 sets of LEAK 3 way floor standers, I have thought about experimenting with having them all connected together from the amplifier output
Both sets are rated 8 ohms so wired in series would give 16 ohms. The LEAK amp can handle 4-16 ohms with diminishing power output, typically, 4ohms 35 watts to 16 ohms 25 watts according to the manual. That lower power is more than adequate for me.
What are people’s thoughts? I have the speakers, I have the amp, I have cable and connectors to make something up to connect it all. I don’t think I’ll get away with this as a permanent fixture in the lounge though
however;
A bit of a breakthrough though, which, if it comes off, will see me gathering even more equipment in the future! There’s only myself and Mrs B at home now ( youngest son is back home until middle of next year though) so two ‘spare’ bedrooms after that. Mrs B has sanctioned my usage of one of these rooms for my HIFI addiction, the only caveat being that the double bed is replaced with a bed settee (Just in case, for guests) plus I need to relax on something! Everything else can go and the rooms mine! It’s a reasonable size of slightly over 20m2 so will suit me fine. Can’t wait!
When I lived on my own, I had the ‘big system’ in the lounge, then a second system in a bedroom and a small radio based system in my office. (Plus a fair few bits of kit stashed gathering dust or loaned out to friends) Moved in with fellow hi-fi nut who had lots of kit too. Also including more than one system, plus bits of kit not always in use.
Initially we had ‘big system’ in lounge 1 Second (more compact) system in lounge 2 Third system in office Now set up another system in Bedroom 1 and a more substantial system in Bedroom 2
We still have some old kit doing nothing, so no doubt will cobble together a few more systems in time - a few repairs needed to some of the electronics first (we have excess speakers, but some old tube amps needing fettling).
I guess when 2 people have been collecting stuff independently over many many years …. and then in later life, they get together - we were always going to find too much space taken up with old hifi kit and records.
TBH, my wife doesn’t quite have the same enthusiasm as I have for this older stuff I’m looking forward to moving in, as it were. For the first time ever, I’ll have a dedicated room to display and use my stuff Not one single bit of it is worth much but I enjoy tinkering and acquiring such items, cleaning them up, getting it like it was back in the day, etc. including the manuals, sales literature etc
originality can be lovely but not at that cost. Then again I use mains cable for speaker wire!
